Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at University at Buffalo: NIH Awards UB $28.4 Million for CSTA Renewal

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded the University at Buffalo $28.4 million over seven years to build on its extensive record of success using the power of research to improve health outcomes and address health disparities throughout Western New York. This is the third Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) that UB has received under the NIH’s National Center for Advancing Translational Science program. Learn more.

Weill Cornell Medicine: Communities of Color Face Greater Barriers in Accessing Opioid Medications for Pain Management

Non-white communities had significantly less access to opioid medications commonly prescribed for moderate to severe pain than white communities over the decade beginning in 2011, according to a study by Weill Cornell Medicine researchers. The findings, published Jan. 21 in Pain, stretched across all socioeconomic groups, and suggest that communities of color may be especially vulnerable to the unintended consequences of efforts to reduce unsafe use of opioid analgesics. Learn more.

Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University: Multiple Covid Infections Associated with Long Covid

A new study that identified 475 patients with post-acute sequelae of Covid-19 (PASC), also known as Long Covid, revealed that nearly 85 percent (403) of these patients had multiple Covid-19 infections over the course of a four-year period (March 2020 to February 2024). Additionally, vaccination independently reduced the risk of Long Covid in patients who had received the vaccination prior to contracting the infection. Learn more.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai: Breakthrough Treatment for Liver Cancer Shows Big Promise in Global Study

Researchers at Mount Sinai have made a breakthrough in treating a type of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This research, led by Josep M. Llovet, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine (Liver Diseases) at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, tested a combination of treatments that could help patients live longer without their cancer getting worse. Their phase 3 study, titled “LEAP-012: Transarterial chemoembolisation combined with lenvatinib plus pembrolizumab versus dual placebo for unresectable, non-metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma,” was published in The Lancet. Learn more.

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University: RNA Therapeutics for Breast Cancer

The SUNY Research Foundation recently released a video that showcases groundbreaking research led by Downstate’s Henri Tiedge, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Physiology & Pharmacology, Neurology, and Medicine, and Valerio Berardi, Ph.D., Research Assistant Professor. The video highlights their innovative RNA-based therapy for breast cancer. The SUNY Technology Accelerator Fund (TAF) invested $50,000 in the project, driving significant progress in their research. Learn more.

Diabetes

Weill Cornell Medicine: GLP-1 Drugs May Reduce Surgery Complications in Patients with Diabetes

People with diabetes who were taking GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs such as tirzepatide and semaglutide had significantly lower rates of hospital readmission, wound re-opening and hematoma after surgery, according to a large study led by investigators at Weill Cornell Medicine, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and NewYork-Presbyterian. Learn more.

Norton College of Medicine at Upstate Medical University Study Finds Automated Insulin Delivery Systems Reduce Hypoglycemia, Hyperglycemia Risk in Older Adults With Type 1 Diabetes

A new study has shown that automated insulin delivery systems, especially hybrid closed-loop technologies, can reduce the risk of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia in older adults with type 1 diabetes. The randomized trial, conducted at 4 centers, including The Joslin Diabetes Center at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y., highlights ways of improving diabetes management in a population at higher risk for serious hypoglycemia, a common and dangerous complication of type 1 diabetes. Learn more.

Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences at University at Buffalo: NEJM Paper: Active Management is Most Effective Concussion Treatment

Active management after concussion is the best way for patients to recover and get back to school and work as quickly as possible, according to a Clinical Practice paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The paper is authored by the University at Buffalo researcher whose work over several decades has helped establish that physical activity facilitates faster recovery from sport-related concussion. Learn more.

University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry: Could Small Repeated Head Hits Cause Major Damage?

The impact makes us cringe—the sound of two helmets making contact during a football game, a player down on the field. Questions swirl: How badly is he hurt? Are his limbs moving? Does he have a concussion? Will this take him out of this game or many? But what about all the other hits to the head—like the impact with the ground during a tackle, hitting another helmet during a block, a foul tip off a baseball bat into the player’s mask during a game or practice, a player heading a soccer ball towards the goal? Learn more.

New York Medical College: Focused Ultrasound’s Promise for Neurological Disorders

Non-invasive, low-intensity focused ultrasound offers targeted treatment and rehab for certain neurological conditions that are difficult to treat with drugs alone, such as dementia, epilepsy, and Parkinson’s disease, according to a new study by New York Medical College researchers. The research, published in Nature Communications Biology, sheds new light on how ultrasound affects blood flow by dilating the smallest vessels in the brain, thereby increasing their ability to deliver energy to targeted regions. Learn more.

NYU Grossman School of Medicine: Fighting Experience Plays Key Role in Brain Chemical’s Control of Male Aggression

Like humans, mice compete over territory and mates, and they also show increased confidence in their fighting skills the more they win. At first, a brain chemical called dopamine is essential for young males to master this behavior. But as they gain experience, the chemical grows less important in promoting aggression, a new study shows. Learn more.

University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry: Common Sleep Aid May Leave Behind a Dirty Brain

Getting a good night’s sleep is a critical part of our daily biological cycle and is associated with improved brain function, a stronger immune system, and a healthier heart. Conversely, sleep disorders like insomnia and sleep apnea can significantly impact health and quality of life. Poor sleep often precedes the onset of neurodegenerative diseases and is a predictor of early dementia. Learn more.

Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University: Adolescents Spend Nearly One Quarter of Each School Day on Smartphones

In January New York Governor Hochul released a report, “More Learning, Less Scrolling,” to prohibit smartphone use during the school day. A team of public health and pediatric researchers, led by Lauren Hale, PhD, of Stony Brook University, are working to understand not just screen time use by adolescents but the duration and content of that use, particularly during a typical school day. Learn more.

Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons: New AI Predicts Inner Workings of Cells

Using a new artificial intelligence method, researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons can accurately predict the activity of genes within any human cell, essentially revealing the cell’s inner mechanisms. The system, described in the current issue of Nature, could transform the way scientists work to understand everything from cancer to genetic diseases. Learn more.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine: The Hunt for Ebolavirus Hosts Narrows

Bats are widely recognized as the primary hosts of filoviruses, such as Ebola, yet the specific host species of ebolaviruses are not definitively known. In a new study, scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the University of California, Davis, have developed a new tool to narrow down potential host species of filoviruses and better prioritize wildlife surveillance. The research is part of global efforts to prevent viral spillover between animals and humans. Learn more.

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Study Finds Wearable Devices Can Detect and Predict Inflammatory Bowel Disease Flare-Ups

Wearable devices can identify, differentiate, and predict flare-ups, or the worsening of symptoms and inflammation, in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Mount Sinai researchers have shown in a first-of-its-kind study. The findings, published in the journal Gastroenterology on January 16, suggest that wearable technology can predict the subsequent development of flares in IBD, enabling continuous disease monitoring through widely available commercial devices. Learn more.

Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons: Delivering Gene Therapy to the Lung Using Nanoparticles

Ever since the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis was discovered 25 years ago, scientists have envisaged gene therapies to correct the underlying genetic defect. Today, gene therapies are being tested in clinical trials at centers across the country, including the Gunnar Esiason Cystic Fibrosis Lung Program at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. Learn more.

NYU Grossman School of Medicine: No Evidence That Maternal Sickness During Pregnancy Causes Autism

Although many studies have reported a link between a mother’s health condition during pregnancy and her child’s risk of autism, a new study shows that nearly all of these “associations” can otherwise be explained by factors such as genetics, exposure to pollution, and access to healthcare. Led by researchers at NYU Langone Health, the study revealed that of the few conditions truly associated with autism, all were actually complications with the fetus—leading the authors to believe that those symptoms were early signs of autism in the child, not the cause of it. Learn more.

New York Medical College: New Study Unravels the Spread of Candida Auris

In just a decade, the drug-resistant fungal pathogen Candida auris (C. auris) has emerged as one of the most formidable threats to health care settings worldwide. Nowhere in the United States is this threat more pronounced than the New York-New Jersey (NY-NJ) metro area, which accounts for nearly 20 percent of the nation’s cases. Learn more.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine: Changes in Microbiome Predict Risk for Sexually Transmitted Disease

Women who develop bacterial vaginosis (BV) often later acquire chlamydia, a common and potentially serious sexually transmitted bacterial infection. Now, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found that BV actually consists of two subtypes—one of which significantly increases the risk of developing chlamydia infections. Learn more.

Faculty News

Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra Northwell: Zucker School of Medicine Faculty Announced as Medical Education Scholarship Research and Evaluation Chair-Elect

This January, it was announced that Doreen Olvet, PhD, associate professor of Science Education at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, has been appointed Medical Education Scholarship Research and Evaluation (MESRE) chair-elect on the Northeast Group on Educational Affairs (NEGEA) Steering Committee, a role that will transition into a two-year term as chair. Learn more.

More News

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University STAR Program Tackles Mental Health Stigma

Downstate’s STAR Program is taking bold steps to combat mental health stigma, focusing on underserved communities facing the intersecting challenges of mental health and HIV. Through its “Stop Mental Health Stigma” campaign, supported by funding from the New York State Office of Mental Health, the program challenges stereotypes, builds understanding, and encourages open dialogue about mental health. Learn more.